by L. T. Meade
boy, you know. He helped me; he is avery nice boy."
My father sank back in his chair, and suddenly, to my amazement andrelief, he burst into a roar of laughter.
"Well, well!" he said, "I admit that I was in a temper; and I was rudeto the lad, too. If you ever have headaches like mine you will get intopassions too, Rachel. Pray that you may never have them; my misery issomething too awful; and when I saw that lad, with his great dark head,and that hair of his coming straight down to his eyebrows, marching upthe stairs with you, I really thought a burglar had got into the house.But, after all, it was only the Dutch lad, and he is clever enough, anddoesn't know our English customs. And to think that he poached an egg!"
"And he made the toast, father."
My father laughed again.
"Whatever he did, he has cured my headache," was his next remark; "Ifeel as right as a trivet. I'll come downstairs, and I'll turn thoselads out, and those girls."
"But, father--father darling--they have come by invitation. It isn'ttheir fault."
My father took my hand.
"So you are lonely, Dumps?" he said. "And why in the world should yoube lonely?"
"I want friends," I said. "I want some one to love me."
"All women make that sort of cry," was his next remark. He pulled meclose to him and raised my head and looked into my face.
"You have a nice little face of your own," he said, "and some day youwill find--But, pshaw! why talk nonsense to the child? How old are you,Dumps?"
"I'll be sixteen in six months," I said. "It is a long way off to havea birthday, but it will come in six months."
"And then you'll be seventeen, and then eighteen, and, hey presto!you'll be a woman. My goodness, child! put off the evil day as long asyou can. Keep a child as long as possible."
"But, father, most children are happy."
"And you are not? Good gracious me! what more do you want?"
"I don't know, father; but it seems to me that I want something."
"Well, look here, you want girls about you, do you?"
"Yes, some girls."
"And you think Rita and Agnes Swan, the daughters of our local doctor,quite delightful companions?"
I made no answer.
"Just wait for me a minute, Dumps, and I'll get dressed and come downand inspect them."
"Oh, but you won't frighten them?"
"Frighten them? Well, if they're that sort they won't be much good toyou. But wait outside the door, and I'll come down. To think that VonMarlo made the toast! And how do you say he prepared the egg?"
"Poached it, father."
"Poached an egg for me, and cured my headache, and I scolded him asthough he were a rascal! I'll make amends when I see him next. Waitoutside the door, Rachel; I'll join you in a minute."
I did wait outside the door, and when my father came out he looked quitespruce. He had absolutely put on a less greasy and shabby coat thanusual, and he had brushed his grey hair across his lofty brow; his paleface looked its most dignified and most serene. He took my hand, and wewent downstairs.
By this time, as I knew there would be, there were high-jinks going onin the parlour. Von Marlo was not present, but Alex, Charley, Squibs,and the girls were playing at blind-man's buff. They were endeavouringnot to be too noisy; I will say that. It was Rita who was blindfoldwhen my father appeared. The tea-table was pushed into a distant cornerof the room; a guard had been put on the fire; and Rita was running assilently as she could, but also as swiftly, round and round, with one offather's own silk handkerchiefs tied across her eyes. Agnes was inconvulsions of laughter, and the boys were also.
"Caught! caught!" she cried, not noticing the entrance of my father, andshe clasped him firmly round the waist.
Her horror when the handkerchief was removed, and she found herselfholding on to the Professor, may be better imagined than described.Poor Rita! she very nearly turned silly on the spot. I had to conveyher to a chair. Father said, "I am your prisoner, Miss Rita Swan. Am Inow to be blindfolded?"
"Oh no, father, you couldn't think of such a thing," I said.
He smiled and looked at me.
"Well, young people," he said, "you seem to be having a very merry time.But where's my Knight of the Poached Egg? Why is he not present?"
However inclined to be impertinent and saucy and rude to me Alex andCharley were when father was not present, they never dared to show thisspirit when he was by.
Father related the story of Von Marlo and the poached egg to the otherchildren.
"He is a chivalrous fellow, and I shall talk to him about it when I seehim, and thank him. I was very rude to him just now; but as to you,Alex and Charley, if you ever let it leak out at college that he didthis thing, or turn him into ridicule on account of it, you won't hearthe last of it from me. It's a right good flogging either of you'llget, so just keep your own counsel. And now, boys, if I don't mistake,it's time for you to get to your books.--Rachel, my dear, you and yourfriends can entertain one another; but would it not be nicest and morecheerful if you first of all requested the presence of Hannah to removethe tea-things?"
As father spoke he bowed to the girls, marched the boys in front of himout of the room, and closed the door behind him.
"Well, I never!" exclaimed Agnes. "To be sure, Dumps, you do haveexciting times in this house!"
"I am very glad you have enjoyed it," I said, and I sat down and pushedmy hair away from my face.
"How flushed your cheeks are! And where is the Knight of the PoachedEgg? What a very funny boy he must be!"
"But you two mustn't tell the story about him either," I said. "I mean,if you have any friends at the college, you mustn't relate it, for theymight laugh, and he was really very chivalrous. Father thinks a lot ofhim; I can see that. And as to me, I think he is the most chivalrousboy I have ever come across in the whole course of my life."
"Oh, that's because he said you were pretty. That's a foreigner's wayof talking. Alex spoke about it when you had gone out of the room. Hesaid of course his sister was good-looking; he would always stand up forhis sister; but it was a foreigner's way."
As Agnes spoke she raised her somewhat piquant little face and glancedat me, as much as to say, "Poor Dumps! you are very plain, but of courseyour own people must stand up for you."
"Well, we can have some games now," I said, forcing myself to turn theconversation.
But the girls were disinclined for games; they preferred to sit by thefire and talk, and ask me innumerable questions about the school, mybrothers, and Mr Von Marlo, and if Mr Von Marlo would be allowed tocome to see them on Sunday evenings, and if I would bring him, and allsorts of talk of that sort. I answered that I shouldn't be allowed todo anything of the sort, and that the only boy I knew in the schoolexcept my brothers was Squibs, and of course, now, Mr Von Marlo.
"Well, well! we'll come and see you again if you like; and you must havetea with us, you know, Rachel. Come to see us the night afterto-morrow, and we'll have some friends who will surprise you a bit. Youdo look very nice in that pale-blue dress. But good-bye now, for it isgetting late."
PART ONE, CHAPTER THREE.
A WELCOME CALLER.
Father looked mysterious during the next few days. I mean that he hadbegun a strange new habit. During meals he used to put down his knifeand fork and stare hard at me. Now, until the affair of the poached egghe had hardly noticed me. He had an abstracted way about him, as thoughhe did not see anybody. Sometimes he would address me as though I wereone of the schoolboys, and would say, "Hurry up, Stumps, with yourlessons;" or, "My dear Moore, you will never win that scholarship if youdon't put your back into the thing." And then he would start violentlyand say, "Oh, it's only little Dumps, after all!"
But this new sort of staring was quite different. He was looking at meas though he saw me, and as though he were disturbed about something. Iused to turn very red and fidget and look down, and look up again, andget the boys to talk, and employ all
sorts of devices to get his eyesoff me. But it was all of no use; those large, calm, thoughtful eyes ofhis seemed screwed to my face, and at times I got quite nervous aboutit.
After a second or even a third day had passed, and this habit offather's had become in a measure confirmed, I went down to the kitchento consult Hannah.
"Hannah," I said, "I don't think father is at all well."
"And whatever do you come and say that to me for?" said Hannah.
She was crosser than usual. It was the sort of day to make any womancross, for there was a dreadful fog